Craps glossary: every word you'll hear at the table

Every term you're likely to hear at a craps table, alphabetically, with the number or payout attached.

A to C

Ace-deuce — A roll of 3 (1-2 or 2-1). As a one-roll bet it pays 15 to 1 against true odds of 17 to 1, an 11.11% edge.

Aces — A roll of 2 (1-1), also called snake eyes. The one-roll bet pays 30 to 1 against 35 to 1 true odds, a 13.89% edge.

Across — Place bets on all six numbers at once. “$32 across” is $5 each on the 4, 5, 9, and 10 and $6 each on the 6 and 8.

Any craps — A one-roll bet that the next roll is 2, 3, or 12. It pays 7 to 1 against true odds of 8 to 1, an 11.11% edge.

Any seven — A one-roll bet on a 7, paying 4 to 1 where 5 to 1 is fair. At 16.67%, the worst bet on the table.

Back line — Another name for the don't pass bar, which sits behind the pass line.

Bar 12 — The rule that a comeout 12 is a push for don't bettors instead of a win. It's how the house keeps its 1.36% edge on the don't side.

Big 6 / Big 8 — Even-money bets that a 6 or 8 rolls before a 7. Identical to placing but paying 1 to 1 instead of 7 to 6, a 9.09% edge versus 1.52%. Place instead, every time.

Big red — Slang for the 7 and the any seven bet.

Boxcars — A roll of 12 (6-6), also called midnight. The one-roll bet pays 30 to 1 against 35 to 1 true odds.

Boxman — The seated supervisor who guards the table bank and settles disputes.

Buy — A bet on a number that pays true odds for a 5% commission. Buying the 4 or 10 pays 2 to 1 and, with the vig charged only on a win, costs 1.67% against 6.67% for placing. See buy and lay bets.

C&E — Craps and eleven, one bet split evenly between any craps and the yo. A $2 C&E is $1 on each. 11.11% edge.

Cold table — A table where shooters keep sevening out fast. It describes the past, not the future; dice have no memory.

Come — A bet made after a point is set that works like a new pass line bet with its own comeout on the next roll. Same 1.41% edge, same free odds. See come bets.

Comeout — The first roll of a hand, puck OFF. A 7 or 11 wins the pass line, a 2, 3, or 12 loses it, anything else becomes the point.

Contract bet — A bet that cannot be removed once a point is set: pass and come. Don't bets and place bets can be taken down.

Crap out — To roll a 2, 3, or 12 on the comeout, losing the pass line. Not the same as sevening out.

D to H

Dark side / Don't — Betting against the shooter with the don't pass and don't come. Named for the mood, not the math; at 1.36% it's the better line bet. See the don't side.

Dealer — One of two standing crew members who pay and collect bets on their half of the table. Place, come, and odds bets go through the dealer.

Don't come — The don't pass version of a come bet. Wins on 2 or 3, loses on 7 or 11, pushes on 12, then needs a 7 before its number.

Down — To take a bet off the layout. “Take me down on the 5” returns the chips to you.

Easy way — Making a 4, 6, 8, or 10 with two different dice, such as 3-5. An easy 8 loses a hard 8 bet.

Eleven / Yo — A roll of 11 (5-6 or 6-5), called “yo” so it isn't misheard as “seven.” The one-roll bet pays 15 to 1, an 11.11% edge.

Field — A one-roll bet that wins on 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11, or 12 and loses on 5, 6, 7, or 8. Even money, except 2 pays double and 12 triple. 2.78% edge. See the field bet.

Free odds — An extra bet behind a line bet that pays true odds (2 to 1 on 4/10, 3 to 2 on 5/9, 6 to 5 on 6/8) with zero house edge. Limited to 3-4-5x the flat bet here.

Front line — Another name for the pass line.

Hardway — A bet that a 4, 6, 8, or 10 rolls as a pair before a 7 or the easy way. Hard 6 and 8 pay 9 to 1 (9.09%); hard 4 and 10 pay 7 to 1 (11.11%). See hardways.

High-low — A one-roll bet split between the 2 and the 12, each paying 30 to 1 on its half.

Hop — A one-roll bet on one exact dice combination. A pair pays 30 to 1; a non-pair such as 3-4 pays 15 to 1.

Horn — One bet split four ways across 2, 3, 11, and 12, in $4 steps. The hit pays its own rate on a quarter of the bet; the rest loses. 12.50% edge.

Hot hand — A shooter who has rolled a long time without a 7. The next roll is still one in six to be a 7.

I to P

Inside — The 5, 6, 8, and 9. “$22 inside” is $5 on the 5 and 9 and $6 on the 6 and 8.

Insurance — Slang for a hedge such as any craps beside a comeout pass bet. The hedge has its own 11.11% edge, so it costs more than it protects.

Lay — A bet that a 7 rolls before a chosen number, paying true odds minus 5%. You put up more to win less: lay $40 against the 4 to win $20.

Lay odds — Free odds behind a don't bet, paid at inverse true odds: lay $6 to win $5 against a 6 or 8, $3 to win $2 against a 5 or 9, $2 to win $1 against a 4 or 10.

Little Joe — Slang for a roll of 4, especially a hard 4 (2-2).

Marker / Puck — The disc on the point number. White ON means a point is set; black OFF means the next roll is a comeout.

Midnight — Slang for a roll of 12, the same as boxcars.

Money plays — The dealer's call confirming that cash on the layout is a live bet.

Natural — A 7 or 11 on the comeout, which wins the pass line immediately.

No roll — A voided throw, usually because a die left the table or didn't reach the back wall.

Off / On — Whether a bet is live for the next roll. Place, buy, lay, and hardway bets are OFF on the comeout unless you say otherwise. See comeout rules.

Outside — The 4, 5, 9, and 10. “$20 outside” is $5 on each.

Pass — The basic bet that the shooter wins: 7 or 11 on the comeout, or the point before a 7. Even money, 1.41%. See the pass line.

Place — A bet that a number rolls before a 7, paid 9 to 5 on 4/10, 7 to 5 on 5/9, 7 to 6 on 6/8. Edges of 6.67%, 4.00%, and 1.52%.

Point — The number (4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10) set on the comeout that the shooter must repeat before a 7.

Press — To increase a bet using its winnings. A $6 place 8 pays $7; “press it” makes the bet $12 and returns $1.

Prop — Short for proposition bet, the one-roll and hardway bets in the center of the layout, all 9% to 16.67%. See proposition bets.

R to Y

Rail — The grooved ledge where you keep your chips, and shorthand for your bankroll.

Right bettor — A player betting with the shooter on the pass and come.

Same bet — Telling the dealer to keep a winning bet at the same size and pay you the winnings.

Seven-out — A 7 after a point is set. It ends the hand, loses every pass and come bet, wins every don't bet, and passes the dice.

Shooter — The player throwing the dice. Must have a pass or don't pass bet down; keeps the dice until sevening out.

Snake eyes — A roll of 2, the same as aces.

Stickman — The crew member who moves the dice with a stick, calls each roll, and handles the center props.

Take down — To remove a bet from the layout. Allowed on place, buy, lay, and don't bets; not on pass or come once a point is set.

Three-way craps — Any craps split into separate bets on the 2, 3, and 12, in $3 steps. Each part pays its own rate (30 to 1 or 15 to 1) instead of a flat 7 to 1.

True odds — The fair payout implied by the dice: 2 to 1 on 4/10, 3 to 2 on 5/9, 6 to 5 on 6/8. The gap between true odds and actual payout is the house edge. See the 36 combinations.

Vig — Short for vigorish, the 5% commission on buy and lay bets. Charged only on wins here; charged up front, it raises a buy 4 from 1.67% to 4.76%.

Whirl / World — A one-roll bet split five ways across 2, 3, 7, 11, and 12, in $5 steps. The 7 portion pays 4 to 1, so a 7 returns your money.

Working — A bet that is live on the next roll. “Working” on the comeout means you've asked for bets to stay on that would normally be off.

Wrong bettor — A player betting the don't pass and don't come. The name is tradition, not judgment.

Yo — See eleven. The most common word a stickman says that isn't a number.